Who would you have picked for the presidential nominees' running mates?

[Lechasseur]

I'll do since 1980 for right now

Democratic:
1984: out of final shortlist, Gary Hart; overall, John Glenn
1988: Dick Gephardt
1992: Bob Graham
2000: out of final shortlist, Jeanne Shaheen; overall, Bob Graham
2004: Dick Gephardt
2008: Joe Biden
2016: Sherrod Brown
2020: Gretchen Whitmer

Republican:
1980: George H. W. Bush
1988: Jack Kemp
1996: Jack Kemp
2000: John Danforth
2008: Mitt Romney
2012: Rob Portman
2016: Mike Pence

[Lechasseur]

My explanation for the choices:

Democrats:
1984: overall I would have gone with John Glenn in order to go more for the center in order to compete better with Reagan; but the final shortlist wasn't good so I would have picked Gary Hart as a party unity pick

1988: Lloyd Bentsen's issue is he seemed like the guy who should have been at the top of the ticket rather than Dukakis; Gephardt would have allowed Dukakis to reach out to blue collar and more socially conservative voters as well without having the same (unintentionally negative) effect on the ticket. Gephardt would also add some youth to the ticket and allow Dukakis to make a play for the Midwest.

1992: Bob Graham is also from the South like Al Gore so Clinton could advance his doubling down of the Southern strategy that way. I also think Graham was a better politician (and more likeable) than Gore and thus would have made a better successor to Clinton than Gore would have, along with being more electable than Gore. The one issue would be Graham having to renounce running for re-election, but by July 1992 it looked like Clinton was going to win anyway.

2000: I really think Graham should have been Gore's running mate as I think he would have helped Gore in Florida and in the South in general. Then yet again, he was a better politician than Lieberman was, along with being more likeable. He would have given more people a reason to vote for Gore than Lieberman did. As he didn't make the final shortlist, I'd have gone with Jeanne Shaheen. She's a moderate but who at the same time doesn't alienate liberals, and she would have done a much better job making up for Gore's Clinton scandal issue than Lieberman did. I wouldn't have gone for Gephardt as he was probably more useful leading the Dems in the House at that point than being running mate. Had Gore been able to win the election with more than a tie, Gephardt would have ended up as Speaker and he would have preferred that job to being VP in all likelihood anyway.

2004: Edwards was a paper tiger who couldn't get Southerners to vote for Kerry. Gephardt I think would have been better with ancestral Democrats who had voted for Bush in 2000 or who ended up voting for Bush again in 2004. Plus, Gephardt I think would have allowed Kerry to do better in the Midwest. With Gephardt on the ticket, I can see Kerry winning Ohio and Missouri and thus the election. Plus, Gephardt was simply more qualified.

2008: Joe Biden was experienced and is a likeable guy who made it easier for Obama to reach out to WWC voters. Good pick who balanced the ticket.

2016: Sherrod Brown was pretty clearly the stand out candidate, being pretty much the only person who was acceptable to all wings of the Democratic Party all while having appeal to swing voters. I think Hillary would have won the election had Sherrod Brown been her running mate. Losing a Senate seat was clearly worth it, especially given the lack of decent options other than him.

2020: Gretchen Whitmer for me is the stand out candidate this time round. She's likeable, charismatic, is acceptable to all wings of the Democratic Party along with being acceptable to swing voters, she has governing experience and has already dealt with a crisis. Thus she would have no problem becoming president and I think she would also be a very good Democratic nominee in 2024.

[Lechasseur]

Republicans:

1980: obvious party unity choice. Plus, Bush was also very qualified to be president.

1988: Jack Kemp had appeal both to conservatives (in 1988) and blue-collar voters. Plus, he would have been seen as more VP material by the electorate than Dan Quayle and would have made a decent potential successor to Bush. He also would have added some youth and dynamism to the ticket without.

1996: unlike in 1988, the 1996 pick would have come out of weakness. Bob Dole wasn't going to win anyway. Clinton had pretty much outrighted Dole on everything except for the economy and abortion, and at least Kemp would keep the base in line thanks to his pro-life stances.

2000: John Danforth seems like a good guy with good experience in Washington. He would have compensated Bush's lack of experience all while being a good VP (unlike Cheney). Plus, Danforth would have been an electoral asset, especially in the Midwest in a way that Cheney wasn't.

2008: Mitt Romney would have allowed more party unity than say Pawlenty or Lieberman, would have covered for McCain's weakness with the GOP base on immigration, and wouldn't have scared off swing voters the way say Palin or Huckabee would have.

2012: Portman had more appeal to the Midwest and to blue collar workers than Rubio or Ryan did, all while being acceptable to the GOP establishment. And he didn't have the issues Christie did.

2016: Mike Pence was reassuring to more establishment and socially conservative Republicans, and didn't have the issues Christie or Gingrich did.

[Lechasseur]

So when you get down to it, the only times I would have made the same picks as the nominees did in the last 40 years were in 1980, 1996, and 2016 on the GOP side; and only in 2008 on the Democratic side (although it might possibly happen in 2020).

[LAKISYLVANIA]

Pence is the best VP choice ever taken. Without him, Trump would have had issues solidifying his base. Palin the worst.

[Lechasseur]

As a bonus, these would be my runners-up:

Democratic:
1984: Geraldine Ferraro (final shortlist); Gary Hart (overall)
1988: John Glenn
1992: Al Gore
2000: Evan Bayh (final shortlist); Jeanne Shaheen (overall)
2004: John Edwards
2008: Evan Bayh
2016: Tim Ryan
2020: Catherine Cortez-Masto

Republican:
1980: Howard Baker
1988: Bob Dole (final shortlist); John McCain (overall)
1996: John McCain
2000: John McCain
2008: Tim Pawlenty
2012: Marco Rubio
2016: Newt Gingrich (due to Christie's issues)

[OSR stands with Israel]

No Hindsight:


Republicans:

1960: Everett Dirksen- Obvious choice as he would help unite all wings of the party and in the crucial Midwest

1964 : Gerald Ford- Would help with moderates in party without looking like he's pandering too much

1968: Gerald Ford- Would help in the midwest, unite the party and in general and wouldnt hurt the party in which Nixon made inroads in too

1976: Ronald Reagan- Would help win TX, FL, MS which would give Ford enough EV

1980: Howard Baker- Helps Reagan in the upper south, gets a person with lots of legislative experiance as well

1988: Jack Kemp- excites the base, and wouldnt alienate any potential voters due to his broad appeal

1992: Drop Quayle for Kemp- See above except add Kemp would be competent unlike Quayle

1996: Colin Powell- Dole needed a super popular pick to help him have any Chance and Powell would have been a good choice

2000: John Danforth- Would help Bush in the Midwest and among all wings of the party

2008: Tim Pawlenty- Good Wildcard pick who can help in midwest

2012: Rob Portman- Would win Ohio for Romney, wouldnt alienate seniors in Florida and make PA as tossup

2016: Mike Pence- helped bring Cruz supporters on board



Democrats:


1960: LBJ - To Help Kennedy in the South without alienating liberals

1964: Humphrey - Helped ticket in populist Midwestern WWC areas and among liberals

1968: Terry Sanford- To Help ticket in South without alienating liberals

1972: Reubin Askew- To Help McGovern with mainstream Democrats as a whole and avoid extremist tag

1976: Henry Jackson - To Help Carter do better in the West

1984: Gary Hart- To help Unite the party after bitter primary , and bring more young voters on board

1988: Lloyd Bentsen - To try to bring moderates on board and add legislative experience to ticket as well

1992: Tom Harkin- To help increase enthusiasm  among liberal voters, and help in crucial midwest

2000: Dick Gephardt- Helps ticket in the border states and Appalachia and among moderate Democrats in the South in general

2004: Dick Gephardt- Helps ticket in Ohio a state everyone expected to be the tipping point, and helps ticket among socially moderate voters

2008: Jim Webb- Helps ticket in Virginia and the South, and fully bring moderates on board

2016: Jeff Merkley- Helps bring Bernie Sanders supporters on Board and brings more populist flavor to ticket without risking a senate seat

2020: Amy Klobuchar - Helps ticket in the Midwest 

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

2000 Gore and Graham
2004 Kerry and Gephardt
2008 Obama and Warner
2016 Hilary and Perez
2020 Biden and Warren

2000 Bush W and Huckabee
2008 McCain and Romney
2016 Trump and Cruz

[dw93]

Republicans:

1960: Nelson Rockefeller
1964: Anyone but little know Miller
1968: John Tower
1972: Dump Agnew for Ford or Rockefeller
1974 (for Ford): George HW Bush
1976: Either keep Rocky, pick Reagan, or spring Bush out of the CIA
1980: George HW Bush. If not him, Howard Baker
1988: Jack Kemp
1996: John McCain
2000: John Danforth
2008: Tim Pawlenty
2012: Rob Portman or John Thune
2016: Mike Pence

Democrats:

1960: LBJ
1964: HHH
1968: Terry Sanford or Ralph Yarborough
1972: Tough call as McGovern was doomed the second he sealed the nomination
1976: Walter Mondale
1984: John Glenn or Lloyd Bentsen (he wouldn't overshadow Mondale like he did Dukakis)
1988: Dick Gephardt or Al Gore
1992: If not Al Gore, Tom Harkin or Bob Graham
2000: Bob Graham or Jeanne Shaheen
2004: Dick Gephardt, Wesley Clark
2008: Joe Biden. I really can't think of anyone better for Obama
2016: Jeff Merkley (the one Senator to endorse Bernie Sanders would be a great way to unify the party)

[😥]

Democratic:
1984: Dale Bumpers, John Glenn
1988: Al Gore, Dick Gephardt
1992: Al Gore
2000: Bob Graham, Evan Bayh
2004: Wesley Clark, Dick Gerhardt
2008: Joe Biden, Evan Bayh
2016: Sherrod Brown
2020: Amy Klobuchar, Catherine Cortez Masto

Republican:
1980: Gerald Ford, George HW Bush
1988: Jack Kemp
1996: George Voinovich, Jack Kemp
2000: Chuck Hagel, John McCain
2008: Mitt Romney
2012: Rob Portman
2016: Mike Pence

[S019]

Democratic:
1984: out of final shortlist, Gary Hart; overall, Fritz Hollings
1988: Lloyd Bentsen
1992: Bob Kerrey
2000: out of final shortlist, Jeanne Shaheen; overall, Bob Graham
2004: Blanche Lincoln
2008: Joe Biden
2016: Sherrod Brown
2020: Stacey Abrams

Republican:
1980: Paul Laxalt
1988: out of final shortlist, Elizabeth Dole; overall, Howard Baker
1996: out of final shortlist, Connie Mack III; overall, Richard Lugar
2000: Tom Ridge
2008: Joe Lieberman
2012: Tim Pawlenty
2016: out of final shortlist, Mike Pence; overall, Kelly Ayotte

[Joe Biden 2024]

Republicans:

1960: Nelson Rockefeller
1964: William Scranton
1968: John Tower
1976: Howard Baker
1980: Howard Baker
1988: Jack Kemp
1996: Lamar Alexander
2000: Tom Ridge
2008: Tim Pawlenty
2012: Tim Pawlenty
2016: John Kasich

Democrats:

1960: Lyndon B. Johnson
1964: Robert F. Kennedy
1968: Edmund Muskie
1972: Ted Kennedy
1976: Frank Church
1984: Gary Hart
1988: John Glenn
1992: Mario Cuomo
2000: Bob Graham
2004: Dick Gephardt
2008: Jack Reed
2016: Sherrod Brown

[America Needs R'hllor]

Democratic:
1944: Harry S. Truman
1948: Robert H. Jackson
1952: Alben W. Barkley
1956: John F. Kennedy
1960: Hubert Humphrey
1964: Hubert Humphrey
1968: Edmund Muskie
1972: Frank Church
1976: John Glenn
1984: out of final shortlist, Geraldine Ferraro; overall, John Glenn
1988: Lloyd Bentsen
1992: Al Gore
2000: out of final shortlist, Jeanne Shaheen; overall, Bob Graham
2004: Gary Locke
2008: Kathleen Sebelius
2016: Cory Booker
2020: Michelle Lujan Grisham

Republican:
1944: Earl Warren
1948: Earl Warren
1952: Arthur Langlie
1960: Everett Dirksen
1964: William Scranton
1968: Charles H. Percy
1976: Nelson Rockefeller
1980: Richard Lugar
1988: Elizabeth Dole from the shortlist, Nancy Kassebaum overall
1996: John McCain
2000: Christine Todd Whitman
2008: Tom Ridge
2012: Mitch Daniels
2016: Chris Christie (mostly to undermine and because he's the least repulsive lol)